The US Secretary of State’s daughter, meanwhile, wore a Ukrainian flag-colored outfit for a White House party
U.S. first lady Jill Biden greets Secretary of State Antony Blinken, his wife White House Cabinet Secretary Evan Ryan and their children during a Halloween trick-or-treat event at the White House © Getty Images / CHIP SOMODEVILLA
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised quite a few eyebrows on Monday, after choosing to dress his kids up in “pro-Ukrainian” costumes to attend President Joe Biden’s traditional White House Halloween party on Monday.
While the senior diplomat and his wife attended without any special outfits, they dressed their son in a green sweatshirt and khaki pants, nearly identical to those often worn by Ukrainian president Vladimir Zelensky.
Their daughter, meanwhile, was dressed in a blue dress with a yellow shawl, apparently meant to resemble a Ukrainian flag.
President Joe Biden, who handed out candy to the children, was also without a costume. First Lady Jill Biden, however, was dressed as a cat, complete with whiskers and a tail.
While some online thought that the Blinkens’ decision to dress their kids as symbols of Ukraine was “cute” and indicative of limitless US support for Kiev, others described the gesture as “creepy” and a “clown show,” pointing out the irony of using a Zelensky costume to ask for candy.
'Mini-Zelensky' Begs Biden for Washington's Sweet, Sweet Candy?US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's kids turned up to a White House Halloween event… appearing to be dressed as President Zelensky and a Ukraine flag.#HappyHalloween | #Samhain | #Halloweenpic.twitter.com/SkAhzh4L7F
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) October 31, 2023
“Dressing up like Zelensky and going door to door to beg for handouts is pretty fitting,” one user wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Meanwhile, according to a recent TIME magazine report, Zelensky himself has reportedly stated that he feels “betrayed” by his Western backers and that his ongoing conflict with Russia has “become like a show” for the Western public.
Read more
“The scariest thing is that part of the world got used to the war in Ukraine,” Zelensky said. “Exhaustion with the war rolls along like a wave. You see it in the United States, in Europe. And we see that as soon as they start to get a little tired, it becomes like a show to them: ‘I can’t watch this rerun for the tenth time’.”
At the same time, top officials in Kiev reportedly told TIME that Zelensky has become delusional and that his desire to “defeat” Russia on the battlefield no matter what, as well as his “stubbornness” have become borderline “messianic.”
“He deludes himself. We’re out of options. We’re not winning. But try telling him that,” one official said, on condition of anonymity.
